What are some reasons that countries have gone to war? Looking for answers other than "oil". ?

Question

What are some reasons that countries have gone to war? Looking for answers other than "oil". ?

Answer 1

Oil is actually a very recent reason to go to war. More traditional reasons include territorial expansion, religion, resources (gold, silver, copper) and revenge.

Answer 2

Some went to war over territory/land.   The Spanish-American War was over a reported bombing of the USS Maine.   Historians felt the bombing and sinking was an excuse for the US to go to war to get more land/territory.  



The American Revolution was not fought for 'oil'-- it was fought for freedom and expansion.



The War of 1812 was an extension of the American Revolution and pushed England out of North America.



The US Civil War was fought over slavery and the expansion of slavery (no oil involved).



Do you need any more examples?

Answer 3

So many conflicts have been caused by religious differences. That's why I'm an agnostic

Answer 4

Football/Soccer result ??  



El Salvador and Honduras 1969.



I kid you not, and really quite sad, although the actual reasons ran deeper.



But the standard answer to this question is 



The War of Jenkins ear.



Which ran on and off between 1739 and about 1748.



And as it involved Britain and Spain, the outcome was a forgone conclusion.



Britain won.

Answer 5

Jenkins' ear  .

Answer 6

I think the main reason is oil

Answer 7

The Falklands War was a 10-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial dependency, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

The conflict began on 2 April, when Argentina invaded and occupied the Falkland Islands, followed by the invasion of South Georgia the next day. On 5 April, the British government dispatched a naval task force to engage the Argentine Navy and Air Force before making an amphibious assault on the islands. The conflict lasted 74 days and ended with an Argentine surrender on 14 June, returning the islands to British control. In total, 649 Argentine military personnel, 255 British military personnel, and three Falkland Islanders died during the hostilities.

Answer 8

It's usually, at least in the modern era, no directly about resources since it's often easier to just trade with someone than to conquer them.  Even the Iraq War, which was criticized on the left as being a "war for oil" wasn't really about oil.  If you read what the proponents of the war talked about then freer flowing oil from Iraq was relatively low on the list of the benefits they thought would flow from it.  Mostly it was mentioned as a way of defraying the costs of invasion: they'd skim some money off the top of Iraq's oil profits.  Instead they thought that a post-Saddam Iraq would be a beacon of democracy in the Middle East, strengthen Israel's position in the region, and revitalize conservative foreign policy at home (which these hawks felt had gone a bit astray since the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 90s).

Answer 9

War of Jenkins' Ear

Answer 10

Gold, poosay, land

Answer 11

Hitler wanted a Bigger empire



The traitor Washington wanted to be President



of the USA

Answer 12

Religion,women,resources and claims of morality.

Answer 13

Canada, 1812, got invaded by the usa

best reason to go to war there there is

Answer 14

For 25,000 years it was gold oil is 250 years old 

Answer 15

Imperialism/ expansionism, religion / ideology, economics / natural resources, piracy / espionage, disputed borders, and at least a dozen other reaons.